Mike Stowe to Present at ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry

This August, Michael (Mike) Stowe, senior energy engineer at Advanced Energy, will be presenting at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry conference in Denver, Colorado. Mike will discuss a paper he co-authored with Jennifer Weiss of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and Perry Stephens of Duke Energy about the potential of using utility incentives to increase industrial facility participation in energy efficiency programs.

In North Carolina, more than half of Duke Energy’s industrial and large commercial customers have opted out of the utility’s programs. This pattern can be problematic for both program administrators and the utility more generally. The good news is that many of these customers already take steps to improve their energy efficiency; however, enrolling in utility-based programs can offer additional opportunities and produce substantial benefits. Furthermore, the industrial sector is highly energy intensive and ripe for savings.

One possible way to increase program participation is by providing incentives and aligning programs with customers’ needs. Integrating incentives with facility management strategies could provide an avenue to better connect with customers. Strategic energy management, for example, is a behavioral approach that uses continuous improvement to reduce energy intensity over time and could promote a partnership between a utility and customer. In his presentation, Mike will use examples of specific industrial customers to explore this potential in more detail.

The ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry conference is held every two years. It brings together the top professionals in the industrial energy efficiency industry, including energy efficiency program administrators, evaluators and advocacy organizations, corporate energy managers, energy management firms and more. The conference offers a space where individuals can network and build a community to share ideas, find solutions and discuss new technologies.

The conference spans from August 15 to 18, and you can hear Mike’s presentation, Realigning Utility Incentives for Industrial Customers: Using Strategic Energy Management to Increase Customer Participation in Energy Efficiency Programs, during Panel 1 on Thursday, August 17, from 8:30 a.m.-10:00 a.m. See you there!